Chicken Noodle Soup for the SasuNaru Soul
by bottlecaps
Summary: A random series of one-shots involving SasuNaru pairings and occasionally other Naruto yaoi pairings . Prepare for ultimate fluff! KibaXNaru one-shot added. ItaNaru one-shot coming soon.
1. Chicken Noodle Soup

**Hello. Yes, yes, I know I've got other fanfiction to be working on, but I had a light bulb moment and decided to write this down. It's really just going to be a series of one-shots of varying relationships. Any requests will be taken into consideration, so if you've got an idea, let me have it! I won't accept full credit for it and I will mention the name of the one who sent in an idea. Right then, enough chattering. On to the story.**

**Note: Naruto and Sasuke are both chunin in this episode. This takes place after the time skip.**

**Disclaimer: Naruto and all other characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto. Think if I begged long enough, I could have Itachi?**

**Warnings: Light fluff. Enjoy!! **

**One Shot: Chicken Noodle Soup**

Never, in all his life, had Uchiha Sasuke been sick. No chicken pocks. No sniffles. Not even a mediocre fever. So why was it that today, on the day of his second C-Rank mission assignment, his body decided to give out on him and come down with a common cold?

"Damn it." he muttered hoarsely, burying further down into the cocoon of blankets that he'd unconsciously made in his sleep.

He was pretty sure he had a fever, and his throat was definitely sore, but this wouldn't stop him. He was an Uchiha. Not only that, but missions were his prime source of income. After all, the Uchiha Mansion didn't pay for itself. And he was getting low on food. He couldn't afford to waste his time lying in bed sick.

With a growl, Sasuke dug himself out of the twisted sheets, but he had barely put one foot on the floor when a shiver chased up his spine. The floor was cold! Glaring at the wooden planks as if they had done him a great personal wrong, he got shakily to his feet and proceeded to the bathroom.

Ignoring the pain that lanced through his aching forehead – just great, now he had a headache to go along with his sore throat and fever – he stumbled blindly in the still-dark room. His hand reached for the light switch and turned it on automatically. BIG mistake. The light scintillating off of the marble sink and mirrors made him want to scream.

"Shit." he hissed, and gritting his teeth through the tortuous spasms that wracked his chest.

'A cough too?' he thought bitterly, though he wasn't at all surprised.

Coughing slightly, as he managed to suppress the worst of it, he reached through a narrow opening in the sliding glass door and turned the faucet on all the way. In several minutes the room was full of steam. He breathed it in, feeling him-self began to decongest already. He flipped off the light switch, waited for his eyes to adjust to the darkness, and then stepped over the ridge delineating his bathtub from the shower door.

"Ah..." he sighed contentedly. "Nothing like a..." he broke off as a wracking cough seized him.

And for nearly a minute he coughed, doubled over, feeling the disgusting mucus sliding down the back of his throat each time he swallowed.

'_It's disgusting...being ill. Absolutely disgusting...but I have to get to the bridge where that little idiot Naruto is waiting.'_

Of course he didn't really mean to call Naruto a "little idiot". If anything at all, he felt quite the opposite, but he would never admit it. Not in a thousand years. He was destined to be alone, without love. Love was something he could not understand, just like he could not comprehend how he had fallen for that short, tan blond with that stupid, blinding grin on his face all the time. He had looked at it from every angle imaginable and still couldn't fathom it.

"Whatever..." he muttered hoarsely.

He stood in the shower, letting the tiny droplets of water pelt him with their warmth until the hot water was nearly gone. Just as he was stepping over the edge another coughing fit seized him. Deep, barking coughs that churned his stomach and made him want to puke wracked his chest; he doubled over, arms folded across his stomach, eyes shut in the darkness. His foot slid on the puddle of water that had formed near the door and he flew forwards, cracking his forehead neatly on the corner of the marble countertop.

He landed on the icy tiled floor with a thud, landing painfully on his hand and left hip. Starbursts swarmed into his vision until finally all the colors melted away and he slipped into unconsciousness.

"Argh. Where the heck is Sasuke?! He should have been here by now." exclaimed Naruto, who was currently pacing back and forth anxiously.

"Calm down, Naruto. I'm sure he'll be here soon." Kakashi said as he watched his pupil pace with one black eye.

He yawned, rubbed the back of his head lazily, and said, "Although, it is rather unusual for him to be this late, let alone the fact that he's even late at all. Why don't you go check on him?"

"Sensei, I can't just go barging into his home to ask him why he's late." Naruto replied, proving to Kakashi once more that he did actually have something in that space between his ears. "Although...what if he's sick or something and he can't come because he's too busy puking his guts out?"

Kakashi merely sweat-dropped at the statement. "Too much info, Naruto."

Naruto looked down at the ground sheepishly. "Sorry, sensei. You're right. I'll go check on him. Be right back!"

Naruto took off down the bridge and across the cobblestone streets, leaving Kakashi alone to muse thoughtfully.

'_He certainly has changed a lot in the past three years. I never would have thought he'd have this much common sense. Still...I wonder if that makes up for the lack of developed thinking skills. Either way, he couldn't tell how his face lit up when I mentioned Sasuke's name. There's definitely something going on between them. They just haven't noticed it yet. Since we're already late, I might as well tell Lady Tsunade that the mission to the Land of Tea is postponed.'_

"Off we go." Kakashi said to himself as he set off at a leisurely pace to the Hokage Tower.

Twenty minutes later he reached Lady Tsunade's office and was waiting in the lounge for her. After a short five minutes, in which Kakashi's perverted mind carried him to a fantasy land where he envisioned Naruto asking Sasuke to marry him...or...wait...it was funnier the _other _way around...Tsunade called for him.

"What is it, Kakashi? Can't you see that I'm busy with loads of paperwork?" the tall blonde woman said grumpily.

Kakashi sweat-dropped as he took notice of the mountain of paperwork on Tsunade's desk. He could not see past them to Tsunade's face, so when she spoke, it sounded as though the papers were speaking to him.

"Uh...But you see, Tsunade, I came straight from the meeting spot knowing you wouldn't be _doing _the paperwork, which is why I came to tell you that the C-Rank Mission to the Land of Tea will have to be given to another team. Sasuke's ill and Naruto..." Kakashi paused to stifle a rather childish giggle at the thought of just exactly what was happening over at the Uchiha Manor before continuing. ", ... went to go check on him."

"Kakashi..." Tsunade said in a voice that warned him a question was coming. "What do you know that I don't know? Do I really want to know what you know that I don't know?"

Kakashi sweat-dropped again as Tsunade stood, rising to her full height, minus the high-heels, which had been kicked off near the door.

"There's...something between Naruto and Sasuke."

"And your point is? Oh wait...you couldn't possibly mean...not that. Not _that._" Tsunade said in a voice laced with horror and disbelief. Then, as if she had already known, a flat look crossed her face. "I already know about _that, _Kakashi."

It was Kakashi's turn to be surprised. "You do? Wait...are we talking about the same_ 'that'_?"

"The L-word." they whispered simultaneously.

"I know." said Tsunade, bending backwards and cracking her back loudly. "But does Naruto know?"

"He doesn't have a clue. As far as he's concerned, they're best friends and nothing more."

They continued their conversation while Naruto, sneezing, made his way to the Uchiha Manor.

'_Dang it! Someone's talking about me behind my back!' _he thought as he sneezed for the third time in a row. _'It's probably Kakashi. Stupid Kakashi...I'll get you for this.'_

"Achoo!!" he sneezed again. "Ugh...If this keeps up, I might as well have a cold."

He stopped running and skidded to a halt in front of the Uchiha Manor. He stared up, mouth open in awe, at the large sprawling complex that was Sasuke's home.

"Well..." he swallowed. "I guess this is it."

He went to the door and knocked, but as he expected no one answered. He slid the door open and walked inside, shutting the door behind him. The air was stale and musty, smelling of old furniture and dust. Even so, as he walked through the mansion, he couldn't help but notice that everything was clean and spotless. He was afraid to touch anything for fear of incurring his friend's wrath so he walked through the center of each room that he came to in his search for Sasuke.

Naruto's eyes alighted on a flight of stairs spiraling upwards to the second floor. Crossing through the living room, he made his way to he staircase and started up it, trusting his instinct to guide him. Just then he heard what sounded like a sneeze, though it was obviously stifled by something or else in was just a very polite sneeze. He took the rest of the stairs two at a time and emerged on the second floor in what appeared to be a long hallway with many doors.

'_Kami...Sasuke's lives here all alone. How does he manage not getting lost?'_

Guided by a mysterious force, he bypassed all the doors until he came to the end of the hallway. Two doors out of the four on each side were open. They were parallel with each other, causing him to stop and think about which one to enter first. Then he decided that it didn't really matter so he went for the one on the left.

Naruto peered in. Nothing. It was the only room in the entire house that suggested daily use. He figured it must be Sasuke's room. Just then he heard a noise and turned around to see a tall pale figure draped in white clinging to the front door of what appeared to be a very expensive looking bathroom. He reacted the way anyone in that situation would have; he fainted.

"Narudo...Narudo...Wake up, Narudo..."

A faint, sickly voice echoed down to Naruto's ears. He didn't want to wake up. Didn't want to see the phantasmagoria again...that creepy wraith-like figure dressed all in white.

'_But you know...' _whispered a voice in the back of Naruto's head. _'That voice sounds an awful lot like Sasuke's.'_

"_**Wake up, damnit." **_said the nine-tails fox, and with that, he shoved Naruto out of his unconscious mind.

"Ah!!!" Naruto cried, sitting up only to collide heads with the previously stated specter.

"Ow..." said two voices simultaneously.

Naruto blinked his eyes rapidly to dispel the tears of pain forming in them. When he opened his eyes for the final time, he was caught off-guard by a pair of deep obsidian orbs. He stopped breathing, stopped thinking. Those eyes...they made him want to...

"Narudo. Snap oud of id."

Naruto blinked again, shifted his gaze a little higher, and met Sasuke's face, which was paler than usual and accompanied by an unhealthy sheen of sweat. His cheeks were flushed red, though his forehead stood out as being extremely white.

"Sasuke. I was worried about you. How come you're talking so funny?" he said, blinking innocently.

Sasuke gave him a look that clearly read, _'Are you a complete idiot? I'm sick.'_

"Are dou an idiod? I'b sick." Sasuke asked thickly.

Neither of them had noticed that while colliding heads, Sasuke's towel had slipped down from around his waist. Now Naruto could see that he was bare-chested, but when his eyes traveled further down without thinking, he saw that the raven was not wearing any clothes. Period.

"Sasuke..." Naruto began. "You're...Um...Y-Y-You're..."

"Spid id oud!" Sasuke shouted, immediately regretting his actions because of his sore throat.

"You're naked." Naruto stated simply.

The chunin looked down, turned redder than a fire engine, and immediately tried to cover his indecency with his hands.

"For da lub od Kami, don'd look!" said Sasuke loudly.

Naruto turned away, howling with laughter as Sasuke tried to maneuver the fall towel around his waist with his shaking hands. Finally, Sasuke got unsteadily to his feet and stood, leaning against the doorframe and panting heavily.

'_Kami...that was embarrassing. He'll never let me live this down. Not in a million years.'_

"Sasuke, is it safe now? Can I turn around?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke sighed. He nodded until he realized stupidly that Naruto couldn't see him nodding because he was currently facing the opposite direction. He wanted to avoid talking, wanted to avoid the usage of words at all because a headache was now pounding fiercely in his skull.

"Yes, Narudo." he said before breaking off into a coughing fit.

Naruto turned around and observed Sasuke with a concerned look on his face. Sasuke couldn't see this of course because he was holding his stomach as he coughed. Naruto could see something drip onto the floor from the back of Sasuke's head...something small and bright red.

"Sasuke, are you alright?"

He was at Sasuke's side in an instant, one hand on his back and the other on his stomach to make sure the chunin didn't collapse. After about two minutes his coughing ceased and he was able to stand straight again. He wobbled on his feet, the towel having fallen to the floor _again, _but Naruto didn't seem to notice or even care.

"Come on." he said softly. "Let's get you into bed."

With one hand on Sasuke's back, he led the genin to his room and helped him sit down on the bed. By this point, Sasuke was shivering uncontrollably due to fever and chills.

"Where are your clothes?"

Sasuke pointed with one trembling hand to a dresser directly across from them.

"Oh, duh!" Naruto slapped himself on the forehead, much to Sasuke's invisible distress, and went over to the dresser. He then pulled open a drawer, found a pair of loose grey sweat pants, boxers, and a plain white long-sleeved t-shirt. He retrieved a pair of socks from the drawer above it.

"Here." the blond proffered Sasuke his clothes and Sasuke took them.

It took him nearly five minutes to dress himself due to his shaking hands. He had trouble getting the shirt on so Naruto had to help him pull it over his head. A stream of red trickled down his face from a neat little cut on his temple just above his hairline.

"Bandages?" Naruto asked. "We need to clean your cut."

Sasuke pointed wearily to the bathroom. Naruto nodded and ran to the bathroom. The only logical place to look for medical supplies was beneath the sink, so he checked there and sure enough he found a small solid black box with a red cross on it.

"Gee. I guess this is it." Naruto said out loud to no one in particular.

He walked swiftly back into Sasuke's room only to see that Sasuke had managed to crawl under the covers and was sitting propped up by a pillow with his eyes shut.

'_What an odd way to sleep.' _he thought to him-self. _'But maybe he's not sleeping at all. He could just be resting. He looks kind of cute sitting there all by himself. Wait a minute!! I did NOT just think that. Nope. I did NOT just think that at all. I'm just going to ignore that last thought.'_

"Sasuke..." Naruto breathed, tapping his friend lightly on the hand that was laying on top of the navy blue comforter.

Sasuke cracked open one eye.

"What?" he mouthed, not willing to speak unless it was absolutely necessary.

"I need to see your head. Did you fall? Are you experiencing any dizziness, nausea, or vomiting?"

Sasuke nodded once, nodded twice, nodded again, and shook his head minimally in response to the fourth question.

"Before or after you fell, cause I know you're sick now."

"After." Sasuke croaked.

"Well, lets hope you don't have a concussion. I'm afraid you'll...no wait...You can lay down."

Sasuke let out a sigh of relief that ended in a brief series of coughs.

'_I've never seen this side of Naruto before. I didn't know he could be so serious...or so gentle.' _Sasuke thought as Naruto dabbed a cotton ball soaked with peroxide across the cut on his forehead.

Even with all his training as a shinobi, he couldn't suppress the reflexive twitch associated with the sting of peroxide on a wound.

"Sorry." Naruto apologized. "I know it burns. Gees." he murmured as he tenderly touched the raised red area surrounding the cut. "You have a lump the size of an egg on your head, though. What'd you hit?"

"...sink..." Sasuke rasped.

"You're voice sounds terrible. Guess I should shut my damn mouth, huh?"

'_Why would he say something that harsh?' _thought Sasuke. The chunin observed a faraway look in the other's eyes. _'What could he be thinking of?'_

"Oh...Sorry." Naruto said, snapping out of his trance.

He set the wet cotton ball down on a desk beside the bed and proceeded to coat the cut with liquid band-aid. The protective coating would prevent infections and it was impervious to water, not that Sasuke would be going out in the rain any time soon, but if he wanted to take another shower, it would not come off.

"There you..." Naruto stopped himself when he saw that Sasuke's eyes had fallen shut and his breathing was shallow but rhythmic. "...go." he whispered.

He replaced the first-aid kit and flushed the cotton ball down the toilet because he could not find a trashcan. He then tip-toed down the stairs without making a single sound and went into the kitchen, which he had discovered during his quest for Sasuke.

'_Hmm.'_ he thought as he peered into the cabinets. It was mostly empty, full of nothing but cobwebby dust and a few cans of vegetables. _"Ew. Veggies. Who in their right mind would eat veggies?' _"Aha!" he said as he reached back into the cabinet and withdrew a can of microwavable noodles.

In the refrigerator he found a few slices of chicken on a plate. After some searching he found a cutting board, a knife, a bowl, a pot, a spoon, and a single chicken broth cube located in the dish cabinet.

He set about pouring a cup-and-a-half of water into the pot and set it on the gas stove to boil. He then found a newspaper and sat down to read it until the water was bubbling in the pot. Then he added the chicken broth cube and waited for it to dissolve completely before adding the noodles.

He cut up the chicken into tiny chunks, remembering Sasuke's sore throat and assuming that big pieces would be too difficult to swallow, and threw them into the pot. He stirred them with a plastic spoon until he was sure that the chicken was warm enough. Then he turned off the heat, poured the newly made chicken soup into a bowl, set it on a tray, and set the pot in the sink.

'_I'll wash it later.' _he thought.

He poured Sasuke a glass of water, placed the drink, a soupspoon, and a napkin on the tray. Then he lifted it with one hand and carried it all the way to the stairs.

"Here goes nothing." he said to himself as he started up the stairs.

Utilizing his ninja skills, he was able to successfully make it up the stairs without spilling the soup or the glass of water. Once in Sasuke's room, he set the tray down on the desk and turned to wake the chunin. But...somehow...he found himself watching said chunin sleep. His eyes traveled across the other male's face. He found simple beauty in the way Sasuke's dark raven hair fell over his defined cheekbones. He felt something stir within him as he continued to watch his friend sleep...something he couldn't quite identify.

When Sasuke began to stir an hour-and-a-half later, Naruto quickly diverted his attention elsewhere. He stared out the window until he felt Sasuke eyeballing him. He turned and got a look from his friend that quite plainly asked _'Why are you still here?'_

"To make sure you don't fall again, for one thing. And to make sure you don't strain yourself because I know you well enough to know you'd try and do something idiotic."

"That's your job." Sasuke replied haughtily, his voice sounding much better after having rested.

He felt much better too. Perhaps his natural healing chakra was kicking in, taking the time to nurture his sick body back to health. Still, it was too soon to tell.

"Right. Well, I made you some chicken noodle soup. It's cold now though, but I'll heat it up."

He touched the edge of the bowl and concentrated briefly until a flow of chakra surrounded it. Steam emanated from the soup almost instantly. Unfortunately, the nine-tails-fox was in a mischievous mood and announced it so by sending a volatile thread of red chakra through Naruto's chakra system.

"Ow. Sonofabitch!" Naruto swore as the soup bowl tilted and he burned his hand on the steaming liquid. "Stupid..." he almost said it...almost said "fox", but stopped himself from mentioning the word. It wasn't like he couldn't control the demon's chakra, but when he was unprepared for its usage, it caught him by surprise and thus incidents took place.

Sasuke was looking at him strangely. Naruto sweat-dropped, cursing the nine-tails beneath his breath. He finally took notice of his hand, which had been burned more by the fox's chakra itself than by the hot soup in the bowl. It was completely raw and white in some places. It was blistered still in others and it hurt like crazy.

"Let me see your hand." Sasuke said.

"I-It's fine." Naruto replied, stumbling over his words.

"Idiot, let me see your hand."

"I'm telling you its –"

"If I have to get out of this bed you really won't like what happens next. Now...your hand, please." Sasuke insisted.

Naruto walked over and held out his hand. Sasuke had to hold back a gasp.

'_What the hell? That's a second and third degree burn. He should be screaming in pain, not standing here calmly like nothing happened. The fox's chakra must have done this. The soup couldn't have...'_

"Hold still."

Even in his ill state, Sasuke was able to generate enough healing chakra to treat the burn. Naruto let out a hiss through his teeth as the skin started to regenerate painfully.

"I could have done it myself." he said when Sasuke finished.

Sasuke, being drowsy again, wasn't thinking clearly so when Naruto said "I could have done it myself.", he interpreted it as something nasty.

"Oh yeah." he found himself say. "Could you do this by yourself?" he asked.

And then...he kissed Naruto. For a brief moment their lips met. It wasn't sloppy kiss, but Naruto was awkward and unsure and all over the place. Sasuke on the other hand, seemed to know exactly what he was doing even though he really didn't, and he was actually surprised when Naruto yanked himself away.

"What the hell did you do that for, idiot?" he roared, glaring at his friend.

His face was flushed red from embarrassment and his lips were slightly rosy as well.

"Because I like you." Sasuke said as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"You..." Naruto started. "You can't just do that to me. It's...It's not right. You can't..." he whispered brokenly.

"Naruto...I...It...It was just a mistake. That's all. A stupid lapse in judgment." Sasuke stuttered, having decided that telling him it was a mistake was better than telling him the truth.

"You idiot!" Naruto shouted.

His baby blue eyes glistened with unshed tears and his rosy lips trembled with the strain of holding them back.

"I can't believe you." he said. "Why would you do that? You don't make lapses in judgment. You're an Uchiha, for Kami's sake. You already stole my first kiss back in the academy. And now you've gone and..."

Naruto began to cry. Sasuke didn't know what to do. He'd never seen Naruto cry before, so he was at a complete and total loss. The only thing he thought he could do that might make it right was by bearing his soul. And that meant confessing.

"Naruto...I...I don't mean that. I'....I really do like you...As more....As more than a friend."

"You can't lie to me like that!" Naruto cried. "You just can't do that."

Sasuke found his own voice rising. He whipped the covers back and stood, grabbing Naruto's hands in his own. Then he took a deep breath and said, "Naruto, listen to me. I like you, alright. I've liked you for a long time, and I'm not messing around with you. I'm serious, okay. I...like...you." he said the last part slowly.

"I...I...You can't be serious." Naruto stuttered, unsure of what to say or think.

'_He can't like me like that. But...he sounds like he's being honest. And I...'_

Sasuke dropped Naruto's hands and grabbed his shoulders instead, looking deep into his cerulean eyes.

"I am serious, Naruto. And to prove it..."

Sasuke leaned forward and kissed Naruto on the lips again. Almost immediately, he ran his tongue long Naruto's teeth, seeking permission. Naruto, not knowing what to do, opened his mouth hesitantly. Sasuke's tongue explored the cavern of Naruto's mouth before he withdrew entirely.

"That's how serious I am. That's what I think about doing all the time. I've just been repressing and holding back all these feelings and I can't do it any more. I just can't. I want to be with you."

Naruto wore a look of complete astonishment on his face. He brought a hand up to touch his lips, which were slightly swollen and red.

"Sasuke...I...I don't know...but I...If I..."

Sasuke felt his heart teetering on the edge of some great indefinable abyss. If Naruto said "no", his heart would fall. If Naruto said "yes" than his heart would sprout wings and fly away from the abyss altogether.

"Yes." he said, and in that instant Sasuke felt his heart soar up to the highest peak of the tallest mountain into the biggest cloud. He was euphoric.

He drew Naruto into a tender embrace and they shared another kiss, this time Naruto mimicking Sasuke's actions from their previous kiss.

"I only hope." he said after they parted breathlessly. "That I don't get sick too."

Sasuke merely laughed.

**The End...**


	2. When The Rain Falls

**Hello everyone and welcome to another shot of Chicken Noodle Soup for the SasuNaru soul. I hope you all enjoyed that last chapter. Oh, and just to clarify because I made a mistake in the previous chapter, ALL of these pairings will be SasuNaru, unless I get a special request from a reader. So, yep, yep, yep. That's how it goes. This one won't be quite as long, so you can get to the fluff faster. : ). Enjoy!!**

**Warnings: Light to medium fluff. Brief abusive-rape scene. Nudity.**

**Disclaimer: Naruto and all other characters are licensed to Masashi Kishimoto. I'm still waiting for them to deliver Itachi via United States Postal Service. (grins)**

**Chapter 2. When the Rain Falls**

The country sky was heavy with dark greenish clouds and the wind howled in the distance. Little plumes of dust puffed up from the ground as raindrops fell from the heavens. From over the hill a yellow bus came. It stopped in front of a tiny trailer with a long driveway and a short blond teenager disembarked. He ran down the driveway until the bus was out of sight before his movement ceased.

"Damn it." he muttered, shivering as the wind pelted raindrops against his bare arms. Gooseflesh broke out on his skin.

He was dressed in a raggedy pair of too-worn jeans with holes in the knees and a long black t-shirt with yet more holes in it. A silver chain hung limply from his black belt. It jangled whenever he moved. His sneakers were quite pathetic looking. They were dog tongued and the laces were gone. A gap in one of them revealed a dirty white sock.

"I don't want to go home."

He thought about just leaving. There was nothing worth taking from home, if he could even call it a home. And there certainly wasn't anything he wanted for keepsakes. He'd rather forget the house, would rather forget the place even existed. Well...the place wasn't so bad...but the man inside...well, that was a different story.

He trudged down the rest of the driveway, up the steps that led to the door, and opened it. He let his backpack slide off his off his shoulder and onto the foyer floor. So far, so good. The place was littered with trash and empty beer bottles and it reeked of booze. Yep...The man had definitely been drinking. But if he could just get to his room, he might be safe. Just maybe he could escape a night of punishment.

The color quickly drained from his face as the door swung shut behind him, revealing a man in his late fifties with long white hair and small black eyes.

"So, Naruto. You're home. How was your day?"

That was one thing he couldn't understand. The niceness. But it would turn. It would turn to violence because it was all part of the game. He had managed to escape his last punishment, but he doubted it would be the same tonight. Never had he gone two nights in a row with a beating. Not once in the past year, when this had all started.

"Fine." murmured Naruto softly.

"What's that? I'm afraid I can't hear you when you're not facing me. Why don't you turn around and answer me, eh?" the old man said.

Don't face him. Don't do it. His instincts screamed at him not to do it, but he found himself turning around, face directed at the floor. Never look him in the eye. Don't look him in the eye until he commands you to do so.

"It was fine, Jiraiya." Naruto repeated.

"Why don't you say that to my face?"

Was that really it? Was it that simple? Just a simple staring contest? He was really good at those now. A tiny bit of confidence welled up in him. He met his adoptive father's stare and the contest began.

"Did you have fun today, with all your little friends?" Jiraiya asked.

Watch out. It's a trick question, he thought. If he said no, that wouldn't please his "father". He'd ask, "Why not?" and then he would be trapped. If he said yes, then he was screwed. Either way, the punishment was getting closer. He swallowed nervously, his eyes drifting down to observe the mouth that inhaled so much alcohol every day.

"You're not looking at me." Jiraiya's voice was soft, dangerous, and surprisingly even for someone who had swallowed three six packs in a twenty-four hour span.

Naruto nearly flinched but kept his blue eyes focused on Jiraiya's beady black ones. His eyes started to water, something that only happened when he was afraid for his life. The moisture built up near his tear ducts. No! He couldn't cry. Crying was against the rules. Crying would get him killed.

"What's wrong, Naruto? You look so sad."

"It's nothing." he almost stuttered.

He couldn't stutter. Stuttering was against the rules. So was crying. So was breathing, practically. But he couldn't help it. Couldn't hold it in any more. But he had to try. He had to be strong if he wanted to get through this by the skin of his teeth. And then...he blinked.

Horrorstricken, he realized what he had done, but then...why wasn't Jiraiya pounding his skull in? Why weren't the blows falling like the rain outside? And then he realized. He was going to do _that._

"Oh no...Please no. Don't do this, dad. Don't do it!"

Jiraiya smiled as he undid his belt and let his pants fall to the floor, revealing an already hard member protruding from a pair of plain boxer shorts. Naruto squeezed his eyes shut, the hot tears sliding down his face, remembering the pain of that night...that night when his innocence had been forcefully taken from him by the man he called "dad".

Naruto's arms were yanked from his sides and the belt was wrapped around and around them so he could not fight back. Damn it. Why wasn't he resisting? Why wasn't he fighting back? Had he already given up hope of escaping? Apparently so, because when Jiraiya kicked him below the knee and his leg gave out and he collapsed on the floor, he didn't even cry out.

Didn't even scream when Jiraiya grabbed a handful of his hair and jerked it upwards.

"I want you to scream for me when I come." he whispered lowly into Naruto's ear.

Then he slammed Naruto's head against the thin layer of carpeted flooring. The teen let out a muffled yell, but it was quickly shut of as it was forced open and something inserted. Something warm, wet, and thick.

"Suck me, you little faggot!" Jiraiya yelled.

Naruto began to nod his head up and down, tears no longer streaming down his face. He was already numb. Already half-dead inside. It felt as thought his soul were decaying, tattering and fragmenting and tearing apart.

When Jiraiya was satisfied he yanked his member from Naruto's violated mouth and straddled Naruto's hips.

"Yeah, I bet you liked that, little faggot, didn't you?"

The name-calling didn't hurt. He'd been called worse before, and would be called worse in the future. That was, unless he ran away. Unless he ran away and called Sasuke, his one and only true love, his boyfriend. But Sasuke couldn't know that he was abused. Couldn't know that he was tainted. He couldn't corrupt Sasuke with his filthiness.

"Answer me, demon."

That word cut to the bone. Tears sprang to his eyes, but he refused to let them fall. Demon...that's what he was...a filthy, disgusting, demon. No good for anything at all but a sex toy. And that's what he was: Jiraiya's sex toy. In the eyes of the Lord...well...he didn't even believe in the Almighty. How could he when he was so obviously forsaken?

"Yes...I liked It." he said dully.

"Say it louder. Say it like you mean it. Now!"

"Yes, I liked it!!" Naruto cried, mustering as much fake passion as he could in that voice.

"That's right, my pet. You'll always like it, because I'm always good to you. Isn't that right?"

"Yes, that's right." Naruto repeated numbly.

His body...his thoughts...his mind were all shutting down, becoming desensitized, preparing him for the pain that was about to come.

Jiraiya yanked down Naruto's holey pants and thin boxer shorts, revealing two pale cheeks. He roughly parted them with his hands and moved his member to the teen's entrance. Without warning he shoved himself forcibly inside, earning a scream from Naruto that rent the air.

The tears were falling again. The pain was unbearable. It felt like had had been sucker-punched in the gut. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't think. Not. At. All.

"Say you like this, Naruto, and I'll make it short."

Lies...The first time had been thirty minutes long. The second time had been shorter, but the third time...No...He couldn't let it go on. He couldn't let this man take his innocence any longer.

There was enough room for him to move...To act out the plan he had formulated in his mind...but could he do it? It was hard to concentrate with the man on top of him, shoving himself at him, tearing at him, but he had to try. He rolled over and kneed Jiraiya in the crotch, causing the man to yell and tumble over him onto the floor.

Naruto climbed to his knees while the man cuddled his privates on the floor, and quickly undid the belt from around his arms. Then he pulled Jiraiya's arms out and wrapped them up in the belt, securing the leather with a double knot. He aimed another kick at Jiraiya's crotch but missed because the man was still doubled over. Then he pulled his own pants up and limped to the front door.

He grabbed his backpack, which contained his schoolwork and a spare set of clothes that he always carried in case he decided to stay out somewhere. Thinking quickly, he grabbed the keys to Jiraiya's old white ford F-150 and shoved them into his pocket. Then he limped swiftly to the truck, tossed his backpack in through the open window, and climbed inside, ignoring the heavy rain that tore at his face and the wind chilled him to the bone.

It took him ten seconds to stick the key in the ignition because his hand was shaking so badly. Like he hoped, the truck started right up, the engine purring to life. He shifted the vehicle into gear and pressed his foot to the petal. Soon he was zooming down a country road that lead to nothing in particular.

His mind was still in panic mode. Still, he managed to stay focused long enough in spite of the thunder crashing around him and the rain blowing in his eyes to keep driving for another twenty minutes. He arrived at the school he had just come home from earlier that same day.

It was only 7: 20 and some of the teachers and students were still there. He could only hope...Wait...was that him...In the distance? That smear of raven and white?

"Sasuke?!" he called out, his voice hoarse and broken.

The smudge of a person came closer, then turned away.

"Sasuke!" he called again.

The person was still moving away. It wasn't him...wasn't Sasuke. He turned off the truck, got out, and nearly fell to the ground because his knees were shaking so badly. Ignoring them as well as the pain in his rear, he stood up and ran to the building. The janitor had no time to yell at him for tracking mud on the floor he'd just cleaned because he whizzed by, took the stairs two at a time, and raced to the room he knew his friend would be in.

"Sasuke!!" he cried out as he burst through the door, tears raining down his cheeks, hair and clothes soaked, teeth chattering.

A tall, pale man with raven hair stood up at his desk. Two teens that appeared to be there for tutoring looked at Naruto with horror, but at that point he was so exhausted he didn't even care.

"Sasuke, I..." he broke off into a fit of harsh coughing. "I f-f-found you."

"Students, please leave at once. Tutorials have been canceled until tomorrow. Please go. Now!" he barked.

The frightened students were ushered from the room by the teacher and the door was shut before he knelt down by Naruto's side and pulled him into an embrace.

"Naruto. What in the hell happened to you?"

"Sasuke...Sasuke...Sasuke..." he choked out between intermittent sobs.

"Naruto...Who did this to you? Are you ––– no, silly question. Of course you're not alright. Naruto, you have to tell me what happened." Sasuke insisted. "Breathe in, breathe out. Now, what happened?"

Sasuke's deep obsidian orbs reflected kindly in the fluorescent lighting from above, but it belied the depth of seriousness and concern in them.

"He r-raped me..." Naruto whispered.

Sasuke wrapped his arms tightly around the distraught blonde, not caring if his suit got wet. Only caring about Naruto, the one he loved with all his heart, in spite of being another male. In spite of being his teacher. In spite of everything that separated the boundaries of teacher-student relationships.

They were both shocked. Naruto was shocked to hear himself utter that dreaded R-Word, and Sasuke was shocked to hear that that was what had happened.

"Naruto...We can't be seen like this."

"Wha–?"

"I'm taking you to the hospital."

"NO!"

"I have to. By law, I have to, otherwise I swear God damn it, I wouldn't put you through it. Come with me. We'll sneak out through the fire escape. Here."

He handed Naruto a tissue from his pocket and helped the teen rise to his feet. Naruto wobbled shakily down the fire escape stairs, clinging to the railing as though it were his only support. Outside the rain had ceased, but the thunder and lightning still crashed and lit up the sky.

Once inside Sasuke's Prius, Naruto sat numbly, staring blindly ahead into the chaotic storm around them.

"Naruto, stay with me. Stay with me, love." Sasuke said. "I'm not going to take you to the hospital. I'm taking you to my place. You can live with me. I don't care if I lose my job. You're more important to me than a stupid salary."

"Mmkay." Naruto mumbled.

He could hear everything, and his heart leapt at the joy of knowing he would live with his boyfriend, but fear paralyzed him. Paranoia set in. What if Jiraiya found him? What if Jiraiya killed his boyfriend and took him back home? For the past year he had been living in hell. He couldn't go back to it now. Not after what he had done. The man would kill him. He wasn't even aware when he started muttering, "He's going to find me. He's going to find me." over and over again, rocking back and forth slightly with his arms wrapped around his thinly clad frame.

Sasuke kept stealing glances at his boyfriend while navigating through the rain-soaked streets.

"Naruto, stay with me. You have to stay with me."

"I don't wanna be here." Naruto replied numbly.

"You have to stay with me, okay. Stay here, Naruto. Follow my voice. Listen to my voice."

"I'm sorry."

"Naruto, don't be sorry. Naruto!!"

Naruto had opened the door to the car and had unfastened his seatbelt. He was about to jump when Sasuke took his eyes off the road to grab Naruto by the elbow and yank him back inside the car. They swerved across the street, nearly missing a lamppost, before Sasuke regained control over the vehicle.

"Don't you ever do that again!" Sasuke shouted as he activated the child safety locks.

"I don't wanna live. He..." Naruto couldn't bring himself to confess it a second time.

"Naruto, love, you have to live. You have to stay strong for me. I know what you're going through right now, believe me. My father...he did the same thing to me that your stepfather did to you, but I'm still here. I'm living proof that you can survive this, but you've got to stay strong."

"Stay...strong?" Naruto gazed strangely at the older man.

"Yes, stay strong. You can get through this. Look, we're here. We're going to go inside, run you a hot bath, and you're going to be just...Oh hell, you won't be okay for a while. I won't sugarcoat it. But you're going to live, damn it, because I can't live without you."

"Okay." Naruto's voice was barely audible above the thunder, but Sasuke heard it and knew that he had finally reached him.

Once inside, Sasuke drew Naruto a hot bath and helped him get into it. Then he stripped himself of his own clothes and climbed in after Naruto. They sat one in front of the other, Naruto leaning back against Sasuke's bare chest and breathing deeply as Sasuke poured water from a cup over Naruto's chest.

"I'm going to clean you. I'm going to make you clean, understand? If I do something you don't like, all you have to do is say "Stop" and I will, alright?"

"Mmkay." replied Naruto drowsily.

Although his muscles seemed tense, Naruto was actually starting to relax. Sasuke's small ministrations helped calm him down and soon he was almost asleep, the memory of the rape fading to the back of his mind with his boyfriend's help.

Half an hour later, the water was lukewarm and Sasuke had to rouse Naruto from him half-asleep state in order to drain the bathtub. He then dried Naruto with a large fluffy white towel and lent him a pair of boxers, a thick pair of gray sweats without the spandex cuffs, and a navy sweater. He guided Naruto to his queen-sized bed (When one works at a prestigious high school, one accumulates wealth to acquire luxuries) and slipped the covers over his prone frame.

After flicking off the light, Sasuke climbed in beside Naruto and wrapped his arms around the teen's chest gently.

"...Love...you." Naruto said tiredly while snuggling against the strong arms that held him securely.

"I love you too." said Sasuke. "And I promise." he continued, feeling Naruto slip off into sleep. "Whenever the rain falls, I'll be your umbrella."

**The End.**

**Aww....Poor Naruto. But the ending was so cute!! You have to admit. SasuNaru with Sasuke as a teacher is H-O-T!! Anyways, two updates in one day. I know. Holy crap. I'm looking for suggestions now, so if anyone's got an idea out there, let me have it!! Credit will be given where credit is due, and I am willing to make alternate yaoi pairings for special requests. So send in your ideas and maybe I'll type something up. Love – Bottlecaps.**


	3. Rough Love

**All right. I was inspired by reviews so I decided to go ahead and post up another chapter of Chicken Noodle Soup for the SasuNaru Soul. There were some errors in my last one-shot that I noticed but I really don't want to take the time to fix them. I'd continue the story from last time if I weren't already writing another story very similar to it called Sanctuary. This is just going to be a very smutty chapter (grins) because sometimes-senseless smut is just so awesome.**

**Warnings: Hot and heavy fluff. Explicit Content.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, but Itachi was delivered to my door this morning via United States Postal Service. So I do own a Naruto character, even if it is in a plushy form.**

**Chapter 3. Rough Love**

Naruto was sitting in his room, attempting to finish homework when the lights flickered once, twice, and went out.

"What the heck?" he said as he started for the flashlight on his nightstand to remedy the darkness.

He had to finish his homework, even though he didn't understand the complicated-looking alphanumerical fractions on the sheet of paper. Even though he didn't have the slightest clue as to which 'x' went with which 'a'. Who cared about derivatives? What was he going to use them for later on in life? As far as he was concerned, they served no purpose other than to induce headaches.

As he reached for the flashlight, he heard the floor creak behind him. That was the only indication he received that someone was present before he was pinned rather violently to the bed.

"HEY!" he shrieked in indignation.

A low, husky chuckle resounded through the room. Naruto stopped struggling at once, a grin spreading feverishly over his face in the dark room.

"Sasuke..." he growled out lowly, the way he knew his lover liked it. "What a surprise."

The homework lay all but forgotten on the blonde's desk.

"Naruto." Sasuke acknowledged in greeting.

He bent down over the boy and, yanking his shirt collar aside, immediately began to nibble at the sensitive area of Naruto's neck. The result was almost instantaneous. Naruto's breathing sped up rapidly as he squirmed beneath the older boy.

Sasuke's arousal pressed thickly against the inside of Naruto's thigh.

"Y-You k-know. You n-need to...give more...warning when y-you c-come in here."

"But I know you like it, Naruto. Say it."

"Say what?" Naruto replied teasingly.

He brought one tan hand up to tangle it in the silky raven locks of his lover's hair.

"Say...I like it rough." repeated Sasuke as he bit down particularly hard upon Naruto's neck, hard enough to draw blood, and began to suck on it.

"Make me." replied Naruto. Using his elbows to prop himself up, he captured Sasuke's pale lips in his own. Soon their lips were rosy and bruised from the rough kissing.

Sasuke swirled his tongue around in his lover's mouth before withdrawing it slowly, leaving Naruto breathless and gasping for more. He released Naruto's arms to pull off the other boy's shirt.

Once exposed to the cold air, his dusky nipples hardened into little peaks. Sasuke tweaked one of them beneath his warm fingertips, eliciting a moan from Naruto. He continued to give the nipple little tweaks and pinches until finally the other boy could stand it no more.

"I like it rough." he moaned, trying to sit up again.

Sasuke paused briefly in his ministrations to strip himself down to his plain black boxer briefs. Naruto's sky blue eyes strayed to Sasuke's waist and found the other teen's member to be largely erect.

"Someone's happy to see me," he said, grinning at Sasuke.

The two lovers gazed into each other's eyes, coal black meeting cerulean blue in a preternatural connection.

"I love you, Naruto." Sasuke breathed into the quiet darkness.

"I love you too, Sasuke. Now..." he said, grinning wickedly. "Where were we?"

"Oh yes...If I do recall, I was doing this..." Sasuke bent low and ran his tongue over Naruto's nipple, earning a gasp from the other teen.

Just then Naruto stopped responding. He lay still, lying half on and half off his bed, beneath Sasuke's taller frame.

"What is it? Is something wrong?" Sasuke looked genuinely concerned.

Naruto suddenly gripped Sasuke's arm and, using his weight to his advantage, rolled over so that he was now on top of Sasuke.

"My turn." he whispered viciously. Sasuke smiled sinfully, a lustful gaze evident in his obsidian eyes.

Sasuke waited impatiently as Naruto stopped to remove all of his clothing. Each article that came off revealed more supple tan skin and more lean muscle. He licked his swollen lips as Naruto turned his attention back to him, pinning him down under an azure gaze.

Naruto jumped onto the bed and rolled to face Sasuke before kissing him once more. Sasuke lay still, enjoying the intense rush of satisfaction he was getting as one of Naruto's warm hands traveled down below his boxer briefs. Sasuke's size never ceased to amaze him. Though he himself was only slightly smaller that the other, its sheer...vivaciousness was nothing more than astounding.

The blonde wrapped his hand carefully around the other teen's member and began to pull upward in slow, repetitive motions. Sasuke's forehead grew slick with perspiration, little beads of it popping out on his face. They continued to kiss until Naruto was straddling Sasuke's hips, still working his magic with his hand. Sasuke felt release growing nearer and nearer. He wanted it. He wanted it almost as badly as he wanted Naruto.

Naruto's own hard-on was growing larger by the second. Naruto instinctively withdrew his hand, which was slick with pre-cum, tugged down both his and Sasuke's boxer shorts, and ground their erections together. A hot, tight feeling spread through his stomach, signaling release, but he didn't want it yet. He stopped his ministrations and moved so that he was lying facedown upon the bed.

Sasuke straddled him next, but instead of entering him from behind, he began a slow tender massage of Naruto's shoulders. The blonde unwound at his lover's gentle touch. Normally he allowed no one to touch his back, but Sasuke was the one exception. Sasuke completed him, made him feel content, and made him feel wanted.

"Mm...Sasuke, that feel's so good." he said, sighing contentedly as the warm massage loosened his tense muscles and eased the ache of a hard school day away. Sasuke then lay on top of Naruto, their bodies molding together to become one, not in a physical sense, but an emotional sense. The warmth they shared together was better than any sex they could have ever had.

After spooning like that for five minutes, Sasuke lifted his chin up as Naruto turned his torso towards Sasuke.

"Now?" he asked. Naruto nodded.

Sasuke eased off of Naruto and bent to the floor, removing something from one of his pockets. The object in need was a small, compact bottle of lotion, easily hidden inside just about anything. He squeezed the contents into his hand, rubbed them together, and then let one fall down caress his still-hard member. The other hand he slipped between Naruto's cheeks, searching for the entrance.

He inserted a lubed finger slowly once he found it, allowing Naruto time to adjust. Naruto leaned forward, the almost-but-not-quite pain of it making him shiver in delicious anticipation. The pressure increased as Sasuke inserted another finger, and then another. Naruto squeezed his eyes shut tight as the pressure nearly overcame him. He let out a gasp when Sasuke pushed his three fingers deep into him, preparing him for what was to come.

"Ah...Sasuke..." Naruto hissed, opening one eye.

He trembled in expectation as he felt the sudden heat of Sasuke's large member by his entrance.

"Ready?" Sasuke asked, voice laden with passion.

"Yes." Naruto replied.

And all at once Sasuke was inside Naruto, earning a cry of pleasurable pain from the other teen.

"God...Sasuke..." Naruto groaned as Sasuke began to move slowly within him.

Sasuke withdrew and entered again, leisurely picking up speed until Naruto was groaning with every thrust and Sasuke glistening with sweat. He felt release coming closer and closer, and he wanted it to come. As he hit Naruto's prostrate, the other boy cried out loudly as his semi-flaccid erection suddenly became hard again.

Sasuke directed Naruto's hips to his own waist so that they met mid-thrust. He aimed for the other teen's prostrate again and as hip and waist collided, he succeeded. Naruto nearly came right then and there.

"Sasuke...Sasuke...Sasuke!!" he yelled, crying his name as he felt the other boy's right hand sneak down to his member and began moving his hand up and down. Less than half a minute later Naruto panted loudly as he came in Sasuke's hand.

Sasuke came almost a second later. Exhausted, they collapsed on top of each other. They were both sweaty and breathless.

"Man..." Naruto said while rolling over to face Sasuke. " I won't be able to sit tomorrow."

"Silence yourself, mortal." Sasuke replied, laughing a little.

"Well...as great as that felt, I need to take a shower for obvious reasons."

"Oh, I'll join you," said Sasuke.

He started to get up, but Naruto pulled his lover back down again by the arm.

"No." said Naruto. "We both know what'll happen if we take a shower together, even though we just had like the greatest sex in the world."

Sasuke turned faintly red. "Good point." he said, nodding in agreement. "Then you go first. I'll wait here."

"Alright." replied Naruto.

He stood up and headed for the shower, allowing Sasuke time alone to think.

**The End.**

**Woot!! Senseless smut rocks!! Man, it took me...maybe an hour to come up with this and type it all. It's always in my head first before I type it. (Turns red) Yep, I waste my school time thinking of new SasuNaru fan-fictions. (nods head eccentrically). Well, that's all for now. Check back in a few days and I'll probably have something else up.**


	4. Part 1 Cold

**I wrote this while listening to Dear Mr. President by Pink. It's a really good song. I think you should listen to it while reading this. I wanted to post this up on Christmas, but decided to post it up now cause I'll be busy that day. So...here's an early Christmas present to you all from me, Bottlecaps.**

**Disclaimer: Naruto and all characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I am merely borrowing them to fulfill my twisted fantasies...all of which involve yaoi. : )**

**Two - Shot: Cold**

"Bye, Sensei. See you tomorrow!!" a brightly clad genin shouted at the top of his lungs, causing said teacher to wince as his ears were assaulted by the cheerful voice.

"Good-bye, Naruto." a silver-haired man said, sighing as he withdrew a certain pink novel from his back pocket and flipping it open.

"Bye, Sasuke! Bye, Sakura!"

"Tch...Idiot."

"Shut up, Naruto. You're so annoying!"

Naruto walked off, his back towards the steadily lowering sun while maintaining a grin until he felt he was out of reach by either of them. Then it seemed to slide off his face, replaced by a more somber expression. His blue eyes, once bright with an inner fire, darkened until it looked as though the flames had been doused by irrefutable pain.

"I'm sorry, you guys..." he whispered. "I'm so sorry. All I am to you guys is worthless. I should just leave and never come back."

Staccato footsteps echoed down the cobblestone street as Naruto made his way home under a fiery sky. Not a mile from the run-down apartment complex where he lived, the scent of smoke made him pick his head up. A tall funnel of pitch-black smoke rose in the sky like a pillar of Hell's tower.

Heart sinking even as he watched, he began to run. Sure enough, as he skidded to a halt in front of what was left of the apartment, there was nothing left to do but survey the smoldering remnants. Not surprisingly, a crowd had gathered around outside the smoking ruins, but they didn't seem to notice him. Among them were some of the villagers that used to scorn him and turn him away from their shops. They all seemed to regard the now-decrepit building with some sort of sick satisfaction.

Naruto turned away, a lump in his throat, and began to run, this time away from the remnants of his home, feeling his heart splinter as he continued until he could not breathe anymore. He ran without looking where he was going. He tore through the trees, not caring if branches slapped him in the face or cut into his arms. He welcomed the pain. Welcomed anything, in fact, that would help distract him from the images that disturbed his mind and made him want to crawl into the smallest, darkest space he could find and hide until he fell asleep for all eternity. He wanted to die.

Breathing heavily, he collapsed on the ground inside the outskirts of the Konoha forest that bordered the Land of Sand. Suddenly he came to realize that some burning liquid was falling down his cheeks. He couldn't see, but he didn't care. He continued to cry as he crawled along the ground until he forced himself to sit up against the trunk of a huge tree.

"I have...nothing left." he whispered brokenly, his voice ringing through the soft quiet that had settled down over the area.

The only other sound beside the wind in the trees was that from his own nearly silent sobbing. Just then he heard a rustle in the trees above him. It was dark out, so he couldn't see very well, but he looked around, tear-filled eyes darting back and forth as though he were trying to see the unseen. The trees rustled again, and then a mysterious figure leapt down before him.

Frozen in uncertainty, he watched warily as the figure came closer and closer still. He squeezed his eyes shut tightly, willing the figure in his mind to go away. When he opened his eyes, the person was standing right before him.

"Naruto..."

**Alright. I'll leave whoever the "mysterious figure" is up to you. You get to chose the character. You're choices are:**

**Neji**

**Sasuke**

**Shino**

**Gaara**

**So...Cast your votes in a review and the second part of this two-shot will be posted shortly after. Until then, see ya! –Bottlecaps.**


	5. Part 2 Warmth

**Hello everyone and welcome to the second part of the two-shot I promised you. The results are in and Gaara was the popular choice next to Sasuke. So, you loyal readers have spoken and...Gaara it is. All right everyone. Get ready, get set, read!!**

**Two-shot cont.: Warmth**

"Naruto..."

The mysterious figure stepped into the light, revealing himself to be a tall, white male with slightly unkempt red hair.

"Gaara..?" Naruto whispered in response.

Hastily he wiped the tears from his eyes, desperate to hide his weakness from Gaara, whom he thought would surely disapprove of such a thing as crying.

"Something happened." he said simply.

He set his gourd down on the ground and proceeded to make himself comfortable beside Naruto.

"This is...new to me." he added, staring at Naruto with viridescent eyes. "I do not know..." he paused, seeming to have great difficulty searching for words. "Tell me about it?" he asked finally.

"There's nothing to tell." Naruto's tone was weary and defeated. "I don't..." he bit his lip to prevent himself from crying again.

The pain sharpened his focus. He bit down harder, drawing blood. A drop trickled down his chin and landed on the back of his hand. Something touched his shoulder and he jerked his head up, startled, to meet Gaara's emerald gaze. His heart palpitated as he continued to stare at the teen before him. Another drop of life fell on his hand.

"Don't do that." Gaara said softly, and reaching a pale hand forward, wiped the blood away with his thumb.

Naruto swallowed nervously as Gaara's eyes continued to bore into him.

"Sorry." he replied. "I don't...I don't have a home anymore. It burned down."

Gaara seemed to stare right through him as he thought. Naruto was sure that Gaara could read minds and decided to distract himself by meticulously shredding a piece of forest grass with his fingers. It was then that he noticed the numerous scratches on his arms.

'_From running through the trees like an idiot.' _he thought, staring at them.

"You could..." Gaara began, snapping Naruto out of his reverie.

"I could what?" Naruto asked.

His nerves were jangling even as he spoke. There was something about Gaara, about his appearance, about his voice, about his words that mesmerized him. Something that he couldn't quite describe.

"You could come live with me?" Gaara said, though it sounded more like a question than a statement. "In the Land of Sand." he added, seeing Naruto's confused expression.

"I'm afraid I'd only be a burden. I should go. Sorry for wasting your time." Naruto stood, stretched, and winced as fire raced through his arms. Some of the scratches were pretty deep.

He couldn't help it. It was how he truly felt. Like a burden to the world. Kakashi-sensei was tired of him. Sakura hated him. Sasuke didn't even so much as acknowledge him unless there was a fight to be had. Iruka...well, lately he'd been avoiding the chunin, taking the longer route home to avoid passing his house. Even Konohamaru hadn't stopped by to greet him in a while.

He was about to leave when Gaara's hand caught his and forced him to turn around and look him in the face.

"That wasn't a question," he said, stepping forward so that Naruto could almost feel the whisper of Gaara's warm breath on his face.

Naruto found himself unable to speak. He was held captive by the look in Gaara's glimmering emerald eyes. Gaara took another step forward. Naruto swallowed again. They were so close...close enough...close enough to kiss.

'_This is insane. What am I doing?' _ thought Naruto even as he found himself stepping forward so that they were bare inches apart.

Gaara's hand touched his shoulder, pulling him closer still. Naruto's heartbeat skyrocketed up to a million miles an hour as the warmth and gentleness of the touch seeped into him, mending his broken heart. For years he had been shunned and ignored, turned away as demon anathema. Was it possible that someone could actually love someone like him, even if that someone carried another demon inside him?

That question was answered as Gaara's soft, pale lips descended upon his own in a gentle, exploring way. Naruto's eyes fell shut as he felt Gaara run his tongue along his lips. Hesitantly the blonde opened his mouth and Gaara slowly explored the cavern with his tongue. Soon enough though, their lungs began to burn and they parted to breathe in deeply.

"Why did you––?"

"Because I like you." Gaara said simply. "I've liked you since we fought after the chunin exams. Your strength is admirable, but you are the kind of person I want to be with. Do you want to come and live in Sunagakure with me?"

Naruto, meanwhile, was astounded at the several lengthy sentences Gaara had spoken. Never before had he heard the other speak so seriously, or for such a length. He himself was still quite in shock from the kiss.

"I..." the blonde began.

Gaara watched him, jade eyes taking in the other's appearance.

"I'll pack...Oh yeah." Naruto looked crestfallen.

Gaara drew him forward and kissed him again. This time Naruto opened his mouth willingly and they stopped only to breathe before kissing again. When they finally parted, Gaara and Naruto gazed at each other.

"Yes." said Naruto finally. "I'll come with you to Sunagakure."

Gaara took Naruto's hand in his and then they teleported. Naruto didn't even so much as glance back at the place he'd once called home. Instead he kept his eyes on Gaara, lost in the warmth that they now shared.

**The end.**

**Well...What do you think? I'll accept any pairings and suggestions for future chapters. Well, Merry Christmas to all and have a safe and happy New Year!! –Bottlecaps**


	6. Hold Me While I Sleep

**Hello everyone and welcome to another chapter of Chicken Noodle Soup for the SasuNaru soul. Ramenbulldog requested a KibaXNaru one-shot, so I decided to go ahead and type one. Hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, then the whole anime would consist of nothing but hot make-out sessions between Naruto and various male characters. :)**

**Notes: We're just going to pretend that Kiba and Naruto are ANBU around their twenties.**

**KibaXNaru One-shot: Hold Me While I Sleep**

_Dream..._

_The smoke was choking him. He couldn't breathe. He was trapped. Every which way he turned, towering walls of flames met him with claws of orange and red. Wait. There! Through the thick haze of smoke he could barely discern a small gap amongst the walls of the conflagration._

_Forcing chakra to his feet, he took off at full speed, aiming for the aperture, but just before he ran through it, the fire spread and rushed at him. He screamed in agony as the flames licked his skin, searing it even as the Kyuubi's chakra healed him. The demonic chakra would heal him every time he was injured, but it was always painful...always._

_A scream tore itself loose from his throat. He fell to the floor, cringing and crying, tears slipping down his cheeks silently and sizzling as they made contact with the hot floor. The smoke permeated his nose, pressed against his mouth, preventing him from getting adequate lung-fulls of much-needed oxygen._

_Blackness surrounded the edges of his vision. He tried to call for help, but smoke and ash rushed into his open mouth and he choked. Grubby tears trickled down his soot-covered face. The fire was consuming him, burning his flesh, his nerve-endings, his entire body, and no one was there to save him._

'_But of course...' he thought sadly as the blackness encroached upon his vision. '...No one ever was.'_

_He lay there, letting the smoke fill his lungs with every breath he took, letting his mind wander as the flames seared him, letting himself fade into oblivion.'_

_End Dream..._

Naruto gasped as he bolted awake. He clutched at his chest, gulping in precious air until he felt light-headed and dizzy. Tears rolled down his cheeks; he scrubbed them away furiously, angry with himself for displaying his emotional weakness so openly.

'_Where am I anyway? Oh yeah...I'm on a mission with Kiba.' _

Hastily he turned to check if Kiba was still asleep or whether he'd woken up to the sounds of his nightmares. Nope. He was safe from questioning. Kiba's loud snores were loud enough to block out any sounds he might have accidentally made during his nightmare.

He crawled out of the nondescript grey tent they'd both been sharing during the mission and stood, arching his back until he heard a satisfactory crunch-crackle-snap.

"Ahhh...That's better. Stupid nightmare." he said to himself.

He knew that he was in unknown territory, but he felt dirty and wanted to scrub away the traces of his nightmare, or at least wash his face. A few meters from camp a crystal clear stream ran wide enough and deep enough for him to bathe. He checked once more to see if Kiba was asleep. The constant drone of the dog boy's snores was akin to that of sawing wood. Naruto couldn't help but smile.

'_At least he can sleep peacefully. I can't remember the last time I slept without a nightmare. It's the last mission I went on...That's probably why.'_

Naruto shivered as the memory almost overtook him. He reached the river and stripped off his ANBU attire before stepping into the river. The water was warm and inviting, like the night air surrounding him. He swam into the center of the river and ducked underwater. The water rushing past him washed the imaginary dirt from his face.

When he could no longer hold his breath, he burst forth from the surface, sending a spray of crystalline drops into the air. He tilted his head up to see the night sky, which was alive and glimmering brightly with diamonds. He sighed.

Meanwhile, back at the campsite, Kiba rolled over and sat up. In all truth, he had been woken by the intense scents of fear and sweat permeating the atmosphere. He could tell that Naruto was having a nightmare just from the smells he exuded. Seeing the blonde in distress pained him, but he continued to fake sleeping until he was sure that the ANBU was gone.

Now he sat up, listening for any sounds that might tell him of Naruto's location. He'd heard Naruto get up and leave, but wasn't sure which direction he'd gone in. His acute hearing told him that Naruto was by the river.

'_What would he be doing there?' _Kiba thought.

And, like always, his curiosity got the better of him. He sat by the entrance of the small grey tent they'd been sharing since they'd started their mission four nights ago and waited until Naruto was looking away. Then he darted out and to the left, using the nearby trees as cover, and crept closer to the river.

After he'd gotten as close as he dared to while making sure he was downwind, he peeked out and immediately turned scarlet. Naruto was floating on his back on the river and his vision was so sharp he could clearly make out all the lines and curves of the other male's body, and that included his...well...his you-know. And as much as he secretly desired to see what was in Naruto's pants, for he did indeed like the genin, he knew that it was wrong to spy on him like this. However, stepping back, he made the one mistake that, had he been fighting an enemy, would have cost him his life. The twig snapped beneath his foot with a loud pop.

"Kuso!" he swore as he ducked low.

"Who's there?!" Naruto called, squatting low in the water. "Show yourself."

'_What do I do? What do I do?' _Kiba thought frantically as though all his years as an ANBU had been thrown out the window.

"Show yourself!" Naruto shouted again, slowly making his way back to the shore where his weapons lay.

Taking on into his hand, he threw it expertly towards the source of the sound.

Kiba moved, but he was too slow. The kunai sliced across his shoulder, cutting it deeply. Blood immediately began to seep from the wound. Figuring it wiser to just admit he'd been spying on Naruto, he came out of the bushes.

"It's just me, Naruto." he said, raising his hands as he came out of the bushes and came towards the blonde.

"K-K-Kiba!!!" Naruto sputtered. "What on earth were you doing?!"

"I...I..." Kiba began, looking guilty. "It wasn't what you think. I...went to take a piss." he said quickly, looking at Naruto with a serious expression on his face.

Naruto wrinkled his nose at Kiba's crude language. He seemed to consider this for a while before finally nodding.

"You may...uh...want to get dressed now." Kiba said, making a strange noise that seemed to be a cross between a growl and a whimper.

"Oh, crap. Turn around, Kiba!!"

Naruto covered his...indecency with his hands and turned around to put his clothes back on when something sharp and metallic-smelling caught his sensitive nose's attention. He turned to see Kiba holding his shoulder, blood oozing out between his fingers.

"Kiba, what the heck happened?" asked Naruto, forgetting about being naked in favor of making sure his partner was all right.

"You nicked me with that kunai you threw." Kiba explained, a slightly pained expression on his face.

"Let me see." said Naruto, approaching him.

"Its fine. Just a scratch."

"A scratch wouldn't be bleeding so much. Just let me see it."

"I said its fine!!" Kiba said adamantly.

"Damn it, Kiba. Let me see. You can't let that go unattended. That's just stupid."

"Fine."

Naruto came closer, completely oblivious to the flushed heat in Kiba's cheeks as he proceeded to roll up Kiba's right sleeve.

"Ow!! Would you watch what you're..." Kiba trailed off, a strangely distant look in his eyes.

"Don't be such a child. I got you pretty good. What...What is it?"

Kiba was staring directly at Naruto, sable eyes piercing into him with a rapt expression. He stepped forward so that they were facing each other, chests almost touching.

"Kiba...Earth to Kiba!" Naruto called, waving a hand in front of his face.

"Shut...up...Naruto." Kiba said tersely.

Naruto seemed to finally notice the awkward position they were in because he turned scarlet. Just then, without warning, Kiba grabbed the other male's hand and tugged him forward so that their lips collided. Naruto's eyes were wide with surprise, but he shut them as Kiba moaned deeply into the kiss.

Finally, when they both decided that they needed air, they parted breathlessly, gazing into each other's eyes.

"What...was that all about?"

Kiba, looking stunned, turned away to stare at the ground.

"So...So I like you!" he blurted out. "And I don't care if you feel the same, but when we were assigned this mission together, I thought I'd finally get a chance to show you how I feel. And I did. So...so..." he floundered helplessly, lost for words.

The beginnings of tears were forming in his eyes. Naruto stood there, shocked, not knowing what to say or do. Finally, he reached out with a hand and tilted Kiba's head up so that they were staring at each other.

"My turn." Naruto whispered breathily, his face inching forwards until their lips were touching again.

This time their tongues swirled together in passionate battle for dominance. Kiba finally won just before they parted. They kissed again and again, moving until Kiba felt water lapping around his ankles. He looked up to see something sparkling in Naruto's sapphire eyes, something mischievous. They moved deeper into the water until they were both standing in it up to their waists.

"So..." said Naruto. "Now what?"

"Now I screw you senseless?" Kiba suggested.

"Hmm...Sounds good to me." Naruto said grinning. "But let me heal your arm first."

Naruto generated a small amount of green healing chakra in the palm of his hand and held it up to Kiba's right shoulder. Within seconds the cut was gone, leaving a faint scar in its place.

"There."

Kiba grinned a feral grin, then reached over and with more gentleness than thought possible from him, he began to kiss Naruto's neck. When he reached the collarbone, Naruto's breath hitched in his chest. Kiba smirked, then bit down upon the tender flesh softly.

Naruto moaned, his head tilted back as Kiba continued his ministrations. His member hardened almost painfully as Kiba trailed his tongue down the broad expanse of the blonde's well-toned chest.

"K-Kiba..." Naruto moaned as he felt him go lower still and take his cock into his mouth, sucking slightly.

Naruto placed his hands on Kiba's shoulders as the brown-haired shinobi continued to suck him, gradually increasing pressure until he nearly cried out in ecstasy. He closed his eyes, enjoying the sensation of Kiba's mouth on his member. He was just about to come when Kiba stopped to give him one final lick, leaving him panting for more.

"D-Don't stop." Naruto moaned.

"Patience, Naru-chan. I'm going to do this right."

"Screw that." said Naruto gazing at him with heat-flushed cheeks.

"Screw you." Kiba replied, kissing Naruto forcefully on the lips.

When they parted, Naruto's lips were ruby red and slightly swollen.

"Screw me." he said, still panting slightly.

"Can do." Kiba smirked as he shed himself of his clothes.

Kiba moved his left leg around Naruto's left leg and pulled it back, sending Naruto to his knees. In one swift movement he had the blonde pinned down. He let his own hard member rub against Naruto's entrance as he leaned forward to bite Naruto's neck again. Naruto gasped as Kiba moved his hips and then suddenly he was inside him without any warning.

It almost felt like he was being torn in two, but then Kiba began to move his hips and the friction made him want to collapse, it was so euphoric. With one hand holding down one of Naruto's hands, he used his other to stroke Naruto's member in rhythm with his thrusts. It wasn't long before Naruto came all over Kiba's hand.

Kiba smirked as he licked the come off his hand. Then he gave one final thrust before coming as well. Naruto felt the sudden heat and moaned one final time before falling forwards into the water. When he stood, he winced slightly. Kiba was big...Bigger than he was.

"What? Not good enough for ya, cause I could go for another round." Kiba said smirking once again as he stood and stretched.

"Shut up, Kiba. It feels like my backside is on fire."

Kiba grinned stupidly and Naruto nearly smacked him in the face. Then he stopped and a look of concern came over his face.

"I wasn't...too rough, was I?" he asked. "Are you alright?"

"It's fine. Don't worry about it. I'll probably just have to lie down for a while. No more butt-raping until I feel better, though."

"I don't 'butt-rape' people." Kiba snorted indignantly. "And you're the only one I've ever done 'it' with."

"Really? That surprises me." Naruto said, feigning amazement.

Now it was Kiba's turn to nearly smack Naruto.

"So..." the brown-haired shinobi said. "What does this make us?"

"Lovers? Boyfriends?" Naruto suggested.

"Fuck buddies?" Kiba added with a canine grin.

"You wish." Naruto replied.

"Damn it. Well, no one can say I didn't try."

"Shut up."

They both dressed silently, lost in their thoughts, which were mostly about the sex they'd just had. Then something seemed to pop into Kiba's head because he sighed and said, "Hey, Naruto."

"Hmm? What is it?"

"You...You had a nightmare tonight, didn't you? Just like the past two nights. When was the last time you got some good shut-eye?"

"It's nothing, Kiba." replied Naruto, unwilling to talk about the nightmares that had him waking up at least twice a night gasping for air.

"If we're going to be together, which I hope we are ––"

"What about anything that we just did gave you the slightest hint that I didn't want to be with you?" Naruto asked quickly, hoping he could change the subject.

"Not going to work, Naruto. I know you too well now, so don't try and change the subject. I'm serious."

"Shocking." Naruto murmured somewhat apathetically.

"I am." Kiba started, heat rising to his cheeks. He quickly calmed though when he saw the intense expression on Naruto's face. "You look like shit. You have enough bags under your eyes to carry a week's worth of groceries."

"Thanks." the blonde replied dryly.

"Naruto, please...I'm no shrink, but sometimes...talking about things helps. I want this relationship to work, but I need honesty, just as I promise to be honest with you."

"It's just a nightmare. Everyone has them."

"But no one I know wakes up crying and gasping for air like you do."

Naruto flinched slightly at Kiba's words, and then again when Kiba touched his shoulder.

Kiba drew Naruto closer so that the blond was leaning against his chest. Then he put his chin on top of Naruto's head and wrapped his arms around him.

"Please, Naruto. I'm not asking for much."

"All right..." Naruto conceded.

They talked deep into the night and only stopped when Kiba's watch alarm beeped, signaling three a.m. Realizing this, they both stood and walked hand-in-hand back to the tent. When Naruto lay down, Kiba followed suit, but scooted closer so that they were spooning.

"This time." Kiba whispered as Naruto drifted off into slumber. "I'll hold you while you sleep."

**The End.**

**A special thanks goes out to ramenbulldog for the KibaXNaru pairing. The next one-shot will be an ItaNaru fan-fiction for Vanpire. So...I guess I better get started on the next chapter then, eh? Remember, reviews are a writer's best friend!! Oh, and if you do review, please send some coffee with it. : ) Over and out, -Bottlecaps. **


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